Pistol or defensive, next coach must have a background in one

“I’ve never put myself in front of this university,” the Wolf Pack football coach said at a news conference Friday to announce his resignation. “This time I did.”

Ault’s done enough for the Nevada Wolf Pack over the last four-plus decades that he deserves to go out on his terms, but the timing was awful. And he knew it. He called it “a** backwards” and apologized to university president Marc Johnson for the timing of his announcement — at a time when Johnson is looking to hire a new athletic director and when recruits are weighing their options.

The athletic director hire — Cary Groth announced her retirement effective June 30 of next year — was already going to be one of the most critical decisions on Johnson’s plate. The school is in its first season in the Mountain West, conference realignment continues to create a quicksand foundation for schools across the nation and Nevada is trying desperately to find ways to keep up with its conference brethren when it comes to budget, infrastructure and resources.

And now this.

And what does it say when someone of Ault’s stature and tenure can reach this decision in about a week and while knowing full well that the timing of it is horrible? To me it says it’s an extremely difficult job. Good luck to the next guy.

“There are tough times ahead,” said Jim Mastro, Ault’s former running backs coach who helped him implement the Pistol and is now the running backs coach at Washington State.

Jim Mastro, Nevada's running backs coach from 2000-10, jokes with receiver Mike McCoy at a spring practice in April 2006. Mastro has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Chris Ault. (Andy Barron/RGJ file)

Johnson will have to move quickly. He didn’t want to put a time frame on when he might hire a new coach. How could he? That’s not normally in his job description. But it will have to be soon, 10, maybe 14 days tops.The program needs a leader as it reaches out to recruits and with just 10 or so weeks until spring practice.

What Johnson has to figure out first, though, is which direction to go. Groth and Ault will surely be there to guide him, and he’d be wise to solicit their input.

Is priority No. 1 to maintain the Pistol offense that Ault invented and used to make the Wolf Pack one of the better offensive teams in the country over the last eight seasons? Or is it to fix this defense that, more than any other factor, sent Ault to this premature decision?

The list of potential candidates will play a role in that decision — as will Nevada’s inability to pay anything near the industry standard for coaches — but the only way to create a possible short-term and long-term fix is to maintain the Pistol offense.

If a new coach were to come in and bring in his own offensive philosophy or hire an offensive coordinator who has his own philosophy, the Wolf Pack will take a major step back. Its offensive personnel — and it is likely to return all five of its skill-position starters — is built for the Pistol, primarily junior-to-be quarterback Cody Fajardo.

Footballscoop.com, which is frequently one of the first sites to accurately report national college football news, mentioned Mastro as a likely replacement. It makes sense. Other than Ault, no one knows the run-oriented Pistol as well as Mastro, who still maintains a home in Reno and just happened to be visiting this week.

Mastro could maintain the bulk of the offensive coaching staff and create the smoothest possible transition.

But this fracture in leadership also provides an opportunity to start anew on defense. It doesn’t really matter if your defensive brains lie within your head coach or your coordinator.

The next coach either has to be that guy or he has to make hiring him his top priority.

Dan Hinxman’s columns appear Sundays, Wednesdays and periodically. Email him at dhinxman@rgj.com, and follow him on Twitter: @DanHinxmanRGJ.

Coach Chris Klenakis is the man for the job! Coach K is certified SEC experienced coach and was the Union OL coach for the pistol for years! No man under Ault has more experience then Coach K, no one! He has seen LSU, Alabama up personal and close the last three years at Arkansas and knows that Defense wins championships and pistol offenses sell tickets! Coach K is from the State of Nevada(Fallon) and has been a part of many of the Packs conference championship teams and winning Bowl teams! Coach K was on the staff when I played for Ault and he is an ass kicker and name taker! His coaching of the Union at Nevada is legendary! He is the man for this position! Let the word be heard!

Any kind of a short list out there for hires?
Mastro needs to be on the staff somewhere if not HC. Otherwise the pistol offense dies. Robin Pflugrad might be a guy who is qualified for HC, and wouldn't need a million to be enticed. Between him and Mastro, you'd think they'd be able to find a solid DC.

About Dan Hinxman

Longtime RGJ Media reporter Dan Hinxman brings you authoritative and engaging stories on Wolf Pack athletics and other local sports stories. Find everything that doesn’t fit in his Wolf Pack sports blog here. Follow him on Twitter at @DanHinxmanRGJ.